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Talk Back: Sherlock's "A Study in Pink"

Now that Sherlock has premiered Stateside on Masterpiece Mystery, I'm curious to know what you thought of the modern-day version of Sherlock Holmes, from creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss.

I reviewed the first three episodes of Sherlock here, and spoke with Moffat, Gatiss, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Martin Freeman in a feature over here at The Daily Beast.

But now that the series premiere--"A Study in Pink" (so clearly an allusion to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "A Study in Scarlet")--has aired last night, I want to hear what you thought of the mystery series.

What did you think of the partnership of Cumberbatch's Holmes and Freeman's John Watson? Did you like the way that Mssrs Moffat and Gatiss updated elements of both characters and included such technological advances such as iPhones, text messaging, and blogging? Did you love the way that director Paul McGuigan visually translated these elements to the screen with thought bubbles and the like?

What did you make of Gatiss' M? Or Rupert Graves' Lestrade? And of the mystery itself this week, that woman in pink, her coat, and that missing suitcase? And of the way that Watson came to Holmes' rescue?

And, most importantly, will you tune in again next week?

Talk back here.

Next week on Sherlock ("The Blind Banker"), Sherlock and Watson work on deciphering the deadly symbols that are covering the walls all around London and killing everyone who sees them within hours before any further victim succumbs to the mysterious Black Lotus.

Comments

LizzieJ said…
Absolutely loved it - to the point of giddiness! Loved the thought bubbles, absolutely loved BC and MF, and thought the mystery was a good one. The cab chase was a tad preposterous, though I loved how they shot it with his thought process showing the way. I am not all that familiar with Sherlock Holmes in general, so don't have anything to compare it to, but I thought it was extraordinarily entertaining and I will absolutely be watching the net 2 eps.
Was marvelous! SH was suitably annoying. And it wasn't hard to fall in love with JW at end of the story. Best delight that had yet to be over-written about in the flood of pre-air press was a Mycroft surprise. Looking forward to more of scenes with him and bro. This was media you felt you got your money's worth plus some.
Loved it and even a family member who's not into British TV loved it!
Tremendously entertaining, breathtaking pace, updated with class and sensibility that makes Holmes and Watson even more immortal than they already are. Perfect and clever use of modern tech.

Wonderful cast! Can't wait for the next episodes and the next season!
Tempest said…
Full disclosure: I am firmly in the Jeremy-Brett-IS-Sherlock-Holmes camp. That said, I absolutely LOVED this. They did a great job of capturing the Conan Doyle characters. And by putting them in the 21st century, it doesn't feel like they're trying to replace the older versions. I don't feel like anyone's making me choose between Brett and Cumberbatch. I also felt they were true to the characters and not just modernizing for the sake of modernizing. Loved the interaction between BC and MF.

Can't wait for more!
George Matusek said…
I was never a fan of the preposterous artificiality of Sherlock's "reasoning" processes in the original stories or their traditional movie and TV adaptations --- they were puzzles rather than interesting "mysteries." I enjoyed them for their foggy Victorian atmosphere, so I was somewhat concerned about "blowing away the fog" in this new series. That said, the fast pace and razzle-dazzle entertainingly cover up the effortful "reasoning."
wdavi said…
I had to watch via the DVR. Timewise, it clashes with Boardwalk. But not too Shabby! Very good indeed. But nothing beats the olcer BBC version with Jeremy Brett from the late 80's-90's.
birdofdoom said…
Personally, I loved Watson's dark side. It seems like he might have to come to terms with how surprisingly similar he is to the calculating Sherlock. The realization that he isn't traumatized by the war, but in fact misses it was a brilliant device. Though he'll find joy in running around London, solving mysterious with his genius flatmate, Watson will struggle under the weight of a burden Sherlock seemingly doesn't possess -- an empathetic conscience.

The production values were off the chart as well, and this helped the city itself to become an eerie character in and of itself.

Utterly psyched for the next installment!
John Ludwig said…
I was quite shocked at the quality of the "reboot" here. I wasn't expecting much, but was pleasantly surprised at what they accomplished here. I really believe that Doyle would approve! Top notch! I can't wait for the next episode.
Pamela said…
Loved it, overall. Really like the relationship between Sherlock and John and the reboot works well. A couple of minor quibbles - I would have expected that Sherlock would have had the capsules analyzed so he would know whether he would have won or not. And it seemed to take too long for him to make the connection between Mrs. Hudson's telling him that his taxi had arrived and the reason for the taxi. But, as I say, those are minor quibbles in a fantastic show.
Josie said…
I just finished the first two episodes, and they were amazing. I watched the first episode twice in a row. I honestly have no idea where this show is being broadcast in the states, I haven't seen any advertisements, but I found it online and fell in love.

I would have never cast Martin Freeman in this role. I would have been terribly, terribly wrong. He is perfect, as is Cumberbatch.

My one problem with the episode, which can only really be noticed if you watch the first episode twice in a row, like me, is Watson's reaction to Sherlock going on and on about his brother. He's got this major glaring fact wrong, and it just seems improbable that Watson would still be SO amazed.

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